VISA / INVITATION LETTER

 

An invitation letter for visa purposes can be obtained through the ERA-EDTA 53rd Congress website by filling in the online form. Should this not be sufficient, the Visa Secretariat will be pleased to send, upon request, a personal invitation to all participants. This letter should NOT be considered as an offer of any kind of financial support on behalf of the organizers. An official invitation letter can be requested by email to the President of the Congress Prof. Gert Mayer () at least three months in advance. This letter however does NOT involve any commitments by the Congress Organizers to cover fees, accommodation, travel expenses or other costs connected to the participation in the Congress. ERA-EDTA will not be held responsible for visas that are not granted. International registrants who require a letter of invitation, will first need to complete the online registration for the 53rd ERA-EDTA Congress. Letters of invitation for spouse/guest registrants will only be provided if the accompanying individual has completed his or her congress registration.

Those who do not require a visa
Nationals of EU member states, the European Economic Area (EEA) and Switzerland do not require a visa for entering the Republic of Austria. EU nationals may travel with a passport or national ID card which is valid for the duration of stay. If travelling from one border-free Schengen country to another, however, EU nationals are not required to show a passport or national ID card at the border. It is still recommended that you travel with your passport or ID card to prove your identity when boarding a flight or checking-in at hotels.

A passport valid for three months beyond the length of stay and issued within the past 10 years is required by all nationals of Australia, Canada, UK and USA. Nationals of Australia,
Canada, UK and the USA may stay for up to 90 days without a visa. A return ticket might be required for nationals of Australia, Canada and USA.

For information on nationals of visa-free countries please check www.bmeia.gv.at/en/travel-stay/entry-and-residence-inaustria/ entry-and-visa/schengen-visa.

All other nationals require a visa in order to enter the Schengen Area or the Austrian territory. For stays of up to 90 days per 180 days these individuals require a Schengen visa, given that they do not take up employment.

Those who need a visa

SCHENGEN VISA
The uniform Schengen visa is a short stay visa (e.g. tourism, private visits, short business, conference) for all Schengen countries (Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland).
Third country nationals who want to travel to the Schengen countries can apply for short stay visas (up to 90 days), which is valid for all Schengen countries. Once you have obtained a visa for one Schengen country, it automatically permits you to enter and travel through any other Schengen country too.
Further information on visa regulations and Schengen visas can be found at www.bmeia.gv.at/en. The application itself does not automatically give the right to travel or to get a visa.
Visas can only be issued if all necessary preconditions are met.
Visa applications have to be lodged at the Austrian Embassy or Consulate in your country of residence. For a list of Austrian representations please check www.bmeia.gv.at/en/embassiesconsulates.
According to each individual case the competent embassy or consulate can ask for further documentation. Please verify with the website of the respective diplomatic representation.

APPLICATIONS for short term visas
(tourism, private, business, conference)
All visa applicants must apply at the Austrian Embassy or Consulate in person.

Necessary requirements/documents:
• Completed and signed application form.
• Passport picture meeting the ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organisation) criteria (color, 35x45mm).
• Passport (must provide at least two empty pages; the first issue date of your passport must not be more than 10 years ago and the passport must be valid for at least three months after the expiry of the applied visa).
• In some representations applicants must submit biometric data (ten fingerprints taken flat and digitally scanned).
• Copy of passport’s data sheet (containing the passport picture).
• Copies of previous Schengen visa, if any.
• Travel itinerary/reservation (it is not required to submit a prepaid ticket!).
• Travels by car: driver’s licence, green insurance card, certificate of approval.
• Travel, health and accident insurance (limit of liability at least EUR 30.000 and return journey) valid for the Schengen Area.
• For students: confirmation of enrolment (Studienbestätigung).
• Notarised letter of authority of parents of underage children, who travel unaccompanied by their parents.

In addition further documents are required:
• Hotel reservation.
• Proof of sufficient financial means.
• Original invitation to the conference (from conference/ congress organisers).
• Proof of registration (payment of registration fee, if applicable).

Consular fees
A decision on a visa application is only possible after the payment of the consular fee and the submission of all documents requested by the consulate. The fee for a visa application for a period of validity of up to 90 days is in general EUR 60,00.

IMPORTANT NOTES
Applications cannot be submitted more than 3 months prior to departure. However please present your application at least 2 months before the intended travel.
The consular fees have to be paid when lodging the application; they are not reimbursed in case of refusal. All points of the visa application form have to be filled in completely and correct. Documents missing may cause inadmissibility of the application or delay the application.

Based on info from the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Republic of Austria, Sept 2015


For any information please contact:
VISA Secretariat
C-IN
5. kvetna 65
140 21 Prague 4
Czech Republic
Tel:
Fax:
E-mail:


final programme "day by day" - may 21 - 24, 2016

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